Sign support structure

ABSTRACT

A traffic display sign having a base of an elastomeric material with an upper and a lower portion, the upper portion having a front surface which is rectilinear, a post mounted in said upper portion, and a display member mounted on said post.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a traffic marker and more particularly, relates to a traffic marker which is designed for displaying information such as around parking lots.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The use of markers for roads is well known in the art. One particular type of marker is a traffic delineator which will identify areas of the highway or road on which automobiles should not travel. Such traffic delineators are frequently used to separate bicycle or walking paths from other traffic. One such type of traffic delineator is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 8,002,493 having a common inventorship with the instant application.

Such traffic delineators are inevitably impacted by vehicles. In order to extend the lifespan of such traffic delineators, flexible posts are frequently used. The traffic delineator shown in U.S. Pat. No. 8,002,493 is designed to withstand high speed impacts while still maintaining its structural integrity.

A further frequent requirement of traffic markers is for signs to display information particularly in areas such as parking lots. The signs may convey information concerning the type of parking permitted including, for example, signs indicating handicap parking. It has been found that such signs, when mounted proximate to vehicles, are frequently impacted by a vehicle. However, the impact is typically at low speed and accordingly, a different type of support for the sign is required.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a structure for a display sign which may be used for vehicle parking and which structure is designed to withstand low speed impact.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a display sign suitable for a parking lot, said display sign comprising a base, said base being formed of an elastomeric material, said base having a lower portion and an upper portion, said upper portion having a front facing surface which is rectilinear, a post secured to said upper portion, and a display member mounted on said post.

The base of the display sign may be designed to be of many different configurations. The base is designed to be secured to a substrate which may either be a road, a concrete curb, an asphalt or concrete pavement or there may simply be an earthen structure underneath. In order to facilitate attachment of the base, a plurality of apertures may be formed therein to receive securing members. Such securing members are well known in the art and are used in many structures which must be secured to a substrate—eg various types of signs or other structures such as temporary garages which are secured to a substrate. Thus, various types of expansion bolts or the like may be utilized. It suffices to say that such securing members are well known in the art and any suitable choice may be made depending upon the nature of the substrate.

The lower portion may be of any desired configuration and in a preferred embodiment, will be octogonal in outline.

The base, as aforementioned, is formed of an elastomeric material. Again, many suitable elastomeric materials are known in the art and one knowledgeable would be able to choose a suitable elastomeric material. In a preferred embodiment, the elastomeric material is rubber.

The upper portion is also formed of an elastomeric material and preferably is formed integrally with the base. The upper portion has a front facing surface which is rectilinear—in other words, substantially flat. This enables the upper portion to give when a force is applied thereto. In a preferred embodiment, the upper extending portion can be configured to be hexagonal or octagonal in shape. It is preferred that an octagonal configuration be employed.

The upper portion has a post secured thereto. Preferably the post is of a rigid material such as a hard plastic, fiberglass or metallic material although it will be understood that other materials, including flexible materials may be utilized.

In order to secure the post to the base, preferably a recess is provided in the upwardly extending portion to receive the post. Naturally, the configurations of the post and recess may be varied although a square or rectangular shape could be considered as optimal.

Although one could rely only on a snug fit to retain the post in the recess, it is preferred that mechanical fasteners such as nuts and bolts may be employed.

In order to provide an attractive and long lasting structure, preferably the base is covered with a metallic material to ensure greater longevity. Many suitable metallic materials such as steel, aluminum, and alloys thereof are well known in the art.

The post is designed to receive a display member. This can be as simple as a sheet of material which would be secured to the post by mechanical fasteners such as nuts and bolts.

The post may also include reflective material formed thereon. Again, such an arrangement is well known in the art and further elaboration is not required.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Having thus generally described the invention, reference will be made to the accompanying drawings illustrating an embodiment thereof, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the outer shell for a base member;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view thereof;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view thereof;

FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view thereof;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the lines A-A of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a base member;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view thereof;

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view thereof;

FIG. 9 is a bottom plan view thereof;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along the lines A-A of FIG. 8; and

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the display sign as a traffic marker.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to the drawings in greater detail and by reference characters thereto, there is illustrated in FIG. 11 a display sign generally designated by reference numeral 10 and which display sign 10 includes a display member 12 and a base 14.

Base 14 has a lower portion 16 and an upper portion 18. A post 20 is designed to be held by upper portion 18.

Lower portion 16 of base 14 has a plurality of side walls 24 each of which merges with corresponding arcuate portion 26. As will be seen, there are provided apertures 28 which extend through side walls 24 and arcuate portions 26 to permit the use of fasteners to secure base 14 to a substrate below.

Upper portion 18 of base 14 includes at least one side wall 32 which is rectilinear in nature. In the illustrated embodiment, there are provided a plurality of such side walls 32, all also being rectilinear in nature. In the illustrated embodiment, there are 8 such side walls 32 to hereby form an overall octagonal structure.

Upper portion 18 also includes a top wall 34 with a recess 36 being formed therein. As will be seen, there are provided a plurality of apertures 38 which extend transversely across upper portion 18 and communicate with recess 36. Apertures 38 are designed to receive fasteners 40 which secure post 20 within recess 36.

A metallic covering 44 is provided for lower base portion 16. Covering 44 may be of any suitable metallic material such as a steel or aluminum.

As may be seen in the drawings, a plurality of small apertures 45 are formed in the base 14 to receive mechanical fasteners such as screws which engage within apertures 47 in covering 44.

It will be understood that the above described embodiment is for purposes of illustration only and that changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. 

I claim:
 1. A display sign suitable for a parking lot, said display sign comprising: a base, said base being formed of an elastomeric material, said base having a lower portion and an upper portion; said upper portion having a front facing surface which is rectilinear; a post secured to said upper portion; and a display member mounted on said post.
 2. The display sign of claim 1 wherein said upper portion has a post receptor, said post receptor comprising a recess formed in said upper portion, said recess being sized to snuggly receive said post.
 3. The display sign of claim 2 wherein said post is secured within said recess by mechanical fasteners.
 4. The display sign of claim 3 wherein said elastomeric material is rubber.
 5. The display sign of claim 1 wherein said upper portion has a hexagonal configuration.
 6. The display sign of claim 1 wherein said upper portion has an octagonal configuration.
 7. The display sign of claim 1 further including a metallic member, said metallic member being configured to cover said lower portion of said base.
 8. The display sign of claim 1 wherein said post is rigid.
 9. The display sign of claim 3 wherein said post and said upper portion has aligned apertures, a bolt extending through said aligned apertures, and a nut secured to said bolt. 